Centrica issues profit warning even as bills rise November 14, 2013 BRITISH Gas owner Centrica yesterday warned that profits would be lower than expected this year, despite recently unveiling a 9.2 per cent increase to customers’ energy bills. “Market conditions remain challenging, particularly in business energy supply in both the UK and the US, in UK gas-fired power generation and in UK gas storage,” said the [...]
Centrica boss pledges not to take bonus this year November 4, 2013 Sam Laidlaw, the chief executive of Centrica, has pledged not to take his bonus for this financial year. Speaking at the Confederation of British Industry, Laidlaw admitted public trust in the energy industry is at an all-time low. His promise, made as part of a debate on "Business Trust Under the Spotlight" responds to the [...]
Business figures get behind Maggie’s campaign July 14, 2014 City figures such as Centrica’s Sam Laidlaw and Gerald Kaye of Helical Bar, have got together to back a £5m scheme to build a new cancer care centre in the centre of the capital’s banking district. The scheme for St Barts Hospital, put forward by charity Maggie’s at Bart’s request, will be presented to the [...]
Exclusive: Osborne tax grab snares key adviser July 10, 2014 A government adviser charged with ensuring taxpayers get value for money from public investments is embroiled in an alleged tax-avoidance scheme being pursued by HM Revenue and Customs. Anthony Odgers is deputy chief executive of the Shareholder Executive, a part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) that offers corporate finance advice to [...]
Government adviser Anthony Odgers snared by Osborne tax crackdown July 10, 2014 A government adviser charged with ensuring taxpayers get value for money from public investments is embroiled in an alleged tax-avoidance scheme being pursued by HM Revenue and Customs. Anthony Odgers is deputy chief executive of the Shareholder Executive, a part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) that offers corporate finance advice [...]
Inside Track: Under fire Glaxo should get a grip July 16, 2014 SIR Andrew Witty has been keeping his head down in recent weeks, as GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) seeks a cure for what ails it in China. It hasn’t been difficult to see GSK’s bunker mentality in evidence: at Wimbledon, its hospitality marquee was shorn of corporate branding, a flaccid attempt to disguise a legitimate business activity. If [...]
London Report: FTSE slips from five-day rise as ex-div firms fall August 20, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index yesterday retreated from a three-week high, halting a five-day winning streak, with companies trading without the attraction of their latest dividend putting pressure on the broader market. The benchmark index finished down 0.35 per cent, or 23.83 points, at 6,755.48 points. Despite markets pausing for breath after recent rises, Standard Chartered [...]
British Gas to pay out £500,000 for mis-selling gas and electricity July 1, 2014 British Gas is set to pay out around £500,000 in compensation to customers for mis-selling gas and electricity in face to face sales. The UK’s biggest energy provider is understood to have referred itself to the regulator Ofgem after discovering it had overestimated potential savings customers could make, according to a Sky News report last [...]
Centrica agrees on £4.4bn gas import contract with Qatar November 6, 2013 FTSE 100-listed energy firm Centrica, which owns British Gas, yesterday confirmed it has signed a £4.4bn deal with Qatar to supply the UK with liquefied natural gas (LNG). Under the four-and-a-half year agreement, Qatargas will supply up to three million tonnes per year of LNG, which could provide enough gas to meet around 13 per [...]
EnQuest buys Centrica’s oil assets October 22, 2013 FTSE 250-listed oil and gas explorer EnQuest yesterday said it has bought assets currently owned by Centrica North Sea Oil for $75m (£46.5m). The UK North Sea-focused producer is buying Centrica’s 50 per cent stake in the Greater Kittiwake Area assets and its entire interest in the Kittiwake to Forties oil export pipeline. The deal [...]